Inside the Halls of Petty: What a difference at Bristol

Wow, what happened to our old Bristol? The new surface made Thunder Valley a tamer version of its old self. With so much room to race, guys didn't have to rely on the "chrome horn" to pass. I am sure some fans wish they wouldn't have touched the place, but it is a better racetrack. Who would have ever thought that you would have a third line at Bristol? It's there now. There was side-by-side racing all over the track. That is what we should all want to see.

Weekend That Was

Doug Randolph has led the Bobby Labonte-driven 43 team to consecutive top-10s for the first time this season. But continuity will be needed to continue the Petty car's success, writes Joe Menzer.

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The No. 43 team and the No. 45 team both had good, solid nights on Saturday. After the long weekend at Michigan we had very little time to get turned around for a Saturday night race. Every employee at Petty Enterprises worked long hours to make it happen. They deserve to be commended. Any time you can leave Bristol, new surface or not, with both of your cars intact it is a good night. But we did more than just that. Our cars were competitive from the drop of the green flag.

Bobby [Labonte] finished eighth and grabbed his second top-10 finish in a row. Kenny Wallace filled in admirably for Kyle [Petty], who is still recovering from his injured hand. Kenny gave the No. 45 Dodge a good run, too. Unfortunately, a pit-road mistake cost him a shot at a better finish.

The No. 43 team has really turned up the wick over the last two weekends. Doug Randolph, what can I say about this guy? He has jumped right in at Petty Enterprises like he has been there for years. Sometimes a driver needs to adjust to a new crew chief. Other times things just seem to click from the start. That is what is going on with Doug and Bobby. It started at Michigan and continued right through to Saturday night. Bobby has some good tracks coming up as the season winds down. He has 12 wins at six of the remaining 12 tracks on the schedule. So expect this new "Dynamic Duo" to keep piling up the points.

When we hired Doug to come over to Petty Enterprises one of the goals we set for the team was a top-15 finish in the points standings. After Bristol, Bobby is only 156 points out of 15th place. That mark still remains a goal.

Kyle is scheduled to be back behind the wheel of the No. 45 Dodge this weekend at California. Chad McCumbee and Kenny came through for us in a big way while he was letting his injured hand heal. I know Kyle hated that he had to miss Bristol, but it was the right thing. He needed to let that hand heal. We really appreciate Chad and Kenny helping us out.

I hope everyone enjoys their Labor Day weekend. This weekend has enjoyed a storied place in the history of NASCAR racing. First it was Darlington and the Southern 500. Now we are carving out another place in the history books at the California Speedway.

See you in Victory Lane,
Robbie Loomis